Thanks! Well, I was going to use it in trial mode, just in case I have to uninstall/reinstall it numerous times, but I can't seem to do that (it requires a key, and the only trial version I see under downloads is for 9), so I guess I'll just hope it runs fine.

But I'm glad to hear that 8.0c runs fine, since I've been using that in XP for quite a while.

Just an update, and I know it's been only one night, but so far, 8.0c is working just fine! I'll have plenty of chances to try it this month.

I've used both 8c and 8b on my win7 64 bit OS, and currently I'm using 8b. It's not as good as 8c, but older .VEGs from Vegas 7 or 8a or 8b won't open correctly in 8c or the various flavors of 9 - the sound sync is way off. For that reason, and only for that reason, I'm stuck for 8b for the time being. Just keep this in mind if you try to open an old .VEG and have sync problems.

Just for the record, you can uninstall and reinstall Vegas as much as you like as long as you have a legit license. I've never heard of a problem doing this. I've done it myself. as needed, to revert from a new version to a previous version.

9.0c is very stable but does have some problems. 8.0c is likely the most problem free version of Vegas at the moment.

But to take full advantage of 64bits and any RAM you may have beyone 4gig, the 64 bit versions are the end game. I was cautioned against V8's 64 bit solution. But I'm starting to think about giving it a try. Where exactly do folks run into problems with this version?

8.0c (and 9) have got a new HDV decoder that wasn't in 8.0b and never made it to 8.1. If you're working with HDV this may be relevant. In my case it's critical.

For me, video editing is a hobby, so I don't see me upgrading to 9 any time soon. I mainly build videos for our Scouts (created one for our end of the year court of honor), or convert old home movies and then burn them to dvd for family viewing.

I've installed 8.0c and will install 8.1 at some point.

I do like that I can install it simply by entering my registration information.

dogwalker, I'm a hobbyist, too, whose efforts appear to be co-extensive with yours. I use both 8.0(c) and 8.1 on my Windows 7 64 bit Ultimate system. I'll give heavy renders and editing a try in 8.1 but I always seem to wind up finishing projects in 8.0(c) because of the greater stability. I think it's generally acknowledged here and on other forums that 8.0(c), for now, seems to work best for most. I'll do quick renders in 8.1, but for serious work I almost always have to rely on 8.0c.

$0.02,
Steve